Here’s What Ruined ‘Buck Rogers in the 25th Century’

While Buck Rogers in the 25th Century may never go down in the history books as one of television’s finest moments, if you were a sci-fi obsessed teenager in the late seventies, you were most likely a fan of the show. Sure, it wasn’t Star Wars or Battlestar Galactica, but it wasn’t trying to be. Instead, this was a show that focused purely on fun. But casting and story changes in season two totally unmoored the show, turning it into a water-down version of its former self.

In this particular version of Buck Rogers, Gil Gerard was really wonderful as the titular character — and even better if you ask me, was Erin Gray, who played a strong and forceful woman, Colonel Wilma Dearing. And then, of course, there was the Draconian empress of evil, Princess Ardala, played to absolute perfection by Pamela Hensley.

Universal Television/ Courtesy: Everett Collection.

During the first season of the show, so many wonderful guest stars made an appearance, including the always amazing Jack Palance in an episode titled “Planet of the Slave Girls.” You really think I was going to miss that episode? No way! Jamie Lee Curtis, Roddy McDowall, Markie Post, and even the original Buck Rogers, Buster Crabbe, showed up and gave their all during season one.

And yes, while there were a couple of episodes that weren’t all that great, the fact that Princess Ardala made multiple appearances during that first season caused me to have a very forgiving heart. Season one of Buck Rogers was so darn good, but the show’s second season, well, some folks think that the less said the better.

Season two was delayed because of a writers’ strike and, during the show’s extended hiatus, I contented myself to read about the upcoming season in Starlog and other magazines like that. The articles teased that the program was going to try and be more like Star Trek. At the time, I thought that sounded promising and couldn’t wait. I also remember reading that industry vet John Mantley would be the new showrunner for Buck’s sophomore season.

Universal Television/Everett Collection

Looking back, I realized that I was waiting for a show that would never return. Because whatever the heck returned in its place was not my Buck Rogers, it was a freaking imposter. I’m not blaming all of the changes on Mantley: there were far too many for it to have just been his fault, but I do think he was at least partially responsible for ruining it. How? You ask. Well, let me start counting down the changes: big changes, little changes. There were just so darn many.

Princess Ardala disappeared

©Universal Television/courtesy Everett Collection

Perhaps the greatest crime of the show’s sophomore season was the complete absence of Princess Ardala. I’m not sure who thought that was a good idea. Apparently, during the writers’ strike, the princess either died, was abducted, or just finally gave up on the idea of wooing Buck to the Draconian way of life, because Princess Ardala was missing in action for the entirety of the second season. Where, oh where did you go, my lovely but evil princess?

Having disposed of Princess Ardala, Mantley and the rest of the show’s creative team even toyed with the idea of not bringing Erin Gray back as Wilma Dearing. It was only after Gil Gerard suggested that he wouldn’t continue as Buck if Gray’s contract wasn’t renewed, that Wilma was written back into the show’s scripts. And I’m not even going to mention the horribly embarrassing outfits that Wilma wore during season two. Oh wait, I just did. Drat.

The addition of Hawk

(c) Universal Television/ Courtesy: Everett Collection.

I guess I’ve got to talk about Hawk, played by actor Thom Christopher. I get it. He really wasn’t a bad character. The reason I don’t like Hawk all that much is because he represents everything that went wrong with season two. I know I shouldn’t blame him, but I do. I can’t help it. I really can’t.

Clearly, Hawk had his fans. Journalist Ryan Britt writing for Inverse describes Hawk as “an alien birdman who kicks ass. Hawk has an outrageous featherhead and is a fantastic stoic ally for Buck. He’s so good, you wish he was in season one.”

The loss of Mel Blanc

(c) Universal Television/ Courtesy: Everett Collection.

To this day, I will never understand why famed voice actor Mel Blanc left the show after season one. The first time Buck’s lovable little robot pal spoke during season two, I literally fell to the ground in shock. That didn’t sound like Twiki at all! No attempt was made to try and have Twiki sound like season one. Didn’t they care? Did they really think that we wouldn’t care? Fortunately, there was enough of an uproar that Blanc did return to voice the diminutive robot for the final handful of episodes near the end of season two.

Topical themes

Like Star Trek, the show tried to take on themes that were far more topical. There were lessons that had to be learned. However, for me, as a young teenage boy, the only lesson that I fully learned during that ill-fated second season of the show was that it was no longer fun. The playfulness of the first season, the joy, the sense of wonder, it was all gone. Somehow, one of my favorite shows had been completely ruined. You’ve heard the old adage, “don’t fix what isn’t broke.” Well, those words of wisdom were definitely true when it came to Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.

Perhaps the final thoughts for this sad, little eulogy should come from the show’s star himself, Gil Gerard. In an article over on the Ultimate Classic Rock website, here’s what he had to say, “I hated that season. It was such a rip-off of Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica. I was thinking: Why are we doing this?”